Written by

Jessica Herndon

Associated Press

‘American Hustle’

Underscoring deeply conflicted characters, who are on a mission to reconceive their unsatisfying circumstances, has become director David O. Russell’s sweet spot. From his raw 1996 film, “Flirting with Disaster,” to last year’s acclaimed “Silver Linings Playbook,” he effectively unravels the disarray.

In the 1970s-set con artist tale “American Hustle,” Russell’s ability to depict an audacious take on a bedlam breakdown peaks.

Loosely chronicling the FBI investigation to implicate government officials by way of bribery known as the Abscam scandal, Russell inserts this disclaimer: “Some of this actually happened.” The note sets the facetious tone for the corruption smear — six congressmen and a senator really went down — that riddled New York in the late ’70s and early 1980s.

Some of the names from the real operation have been changed here, as Irving Rosenfeld, played by Christian Bale, is based on actual con artist Mel Weinberg, who was forced to conspire with the FBI to evade doing time.

Bale, as Irving, is a clever swindler who owns a slew of dry cleaners, sells both poached and fake art and hooks people into pseudo loan deals. But he’s not exclusively heartless. His conscience ensures he ideally wants a person to feel satisfied, which makes him quite lovable.

Irving charms the smart and sassy former stripper Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) at a winter indoor-pool party. Sydney pitches in on Irving’s crooking. Before long, the two fall in love.

But we soon find out Irving is married and stashes his lady Roselyn and her son on Long Island. His sultry and blunt companion, fiercely pronounced by Jennifer Lawrence, ensures she’s far from forgotten as she threatens to unmask Irving’s scheming if he utters the word divorce.

As Irving and Sydney’s plotting gains steam, they attract the interest of FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), who threatens a bust unless the couple goes in on a plan to nail politicians.

When the scheme to take down New Jersey mayor Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner) goes wrong, things begin to unravel.

The film may lack grit but the cast adds to its allure, helping round out this dynamic account where reinvention offers the means to endure.